Solar Electricity - Grid Connect

[Nuddy Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Nuddy]

Re: Solar Electricity - Grid Connect

Nuddy,
That is one BIG system.
Are you Grid Connect or Stand Alone?
Please describe your system so we can appreciate it better.
Photos of the installation would be good too.

Thanks,
Tony

Grid connect with gross feed in tariff of 60c/kWh guaranteed for the next 7 years.
28 suntech panels. 2 rows, one of 15 and one of 13. SMA inverter (coming next week).
Cost us $16.5k should make us $5k/year for the next 7 years.
No photo's yet as my wife has the camera in NT.

[RODEONICK Too Busy To Bio. Find all posts View Profile Close RODEONICK]

Re: Solar Electricity - Grid Connect

just to share got my approval from integral energy to connect to the grid today (yay). Im getting a 3.06 kw system. fronius inverter with 18 astronergy 170w panels. connection in 4 weeks but the main thing is im garrenteed the 60c/kwh GFIT.

[Tony From West Oz Vice Chairperson of WARFA Find all posts View Profile Close Tony From West Oz]

Re: Solar Electricity - Grid Connect

Well Done,
You will not regret it.

Keep up the good work with other energy saving and lifestyle changes.

Regards,
Tony

[RODEONICK Too Busy To Bio. Find all posts View Profile Close RODEONICK]

Re: Solar Electricity - Grid Connect

how is everyones installs going? my date has pushed back to 10/6/10. so not too far away. seems that inverters are quite sort after commodities these days.

[Robert Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close Robert]

Re: Solar Electricity - Grid Connect

I've got a nice little 1.5kW system installed a few weeks back. Not making so much as it's been so cloudy, but I expect that it will pay itself off in 2 to 3 years with the GFiT. I am with Origin Energy and they give $0.66/kWh, so 10% above the NSW State level. I hear that AGL were offering $0.68.
Some of the bigger installers are having trouble keeping up with demand and supply of panels and inverters can be scarce. There are also troubles with getting the Gross Meters installed in some places. I was lucky to find a local sparky who did very good quality workmanship, had good options on the panels and inverters and also gave a very keen price. I got my system installed in just under 4 weeks following my order.
The meter install took a little longer, but only as I'd thought I was with Energy Aust when I was actually with Integral. Luckily it was only an extra week to wait.

I hear that as the AUD goes down against the USD combined with the value of RECs also diminishing (I guess the market must be more flooded with RECs now that there has been so much solar take-up), the net price of a 3kW system could now be about $1000 more than it was last month. Still with the NSW GFiT this would equate to roughly 4-6 months additional time to pay it off, so still worthwhile I reckon.

[Captain Echidna Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Captain Echidna]

Re: Solar Electricity - Grid Connect

Finally settled my account with the electricity supplier after about 12 months of my 2.4Kw solar panels being installed. It came to $470 they paid me! Not bad considering we have electric cooking, solar/ wood/ electric hot water (hot water not turned on) dishwasher that runs once a day etc. A big thing to consider is maximise the power going back into the grid by doing the washing etc at night rather than the day.

[RODEONICK Too Busy To Bio. Find all posts View Profile Close RODEONICK]

Re: Solar Electricity - Grid Connect

with gross metering this does not really matter at all does it??

[Captain Echidna Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Captain Echidna]

Re: Solar Electricity - Grid Connect

with gross metering this does not really matter at all does it??

If you live is NSW no it doesnt. Ididnt realsie anyone was lucky enough to have gross.

If you are in SA (or VIC or WA?), net metering, yes, as you only get paid on the excess that goes into the grid, not everything you make regardless of when you use it.

[Nuddy Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Nuddy]

Re: Solar Electricity - Grid Connect

I am sitting on the beach on Punsand Bay in Cape York. Went to The Tip yesterday afternoon.
This morning I had a Call from Angus of 'Solar Choice'.
My CONFIDENTIAL comparative quote from Solar Choice has been posted on the net.
My mistake originally as I inadvertently posted it on this thread (now edited out).
Please, anyone who can help get it off the net, please do so. Very urgent. Thanks.

BTW, still waiting for inverter. Angus very helpful in getting things moving and getting another brand inverter installed in the interim.
Solar Choice do a great job and deserve our support and any help with getting the link removed will be much appreciated.

[Geoffwin Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Geoffwin]

Re: Solar Electricity - Grid Connect

I think that if the link has laready been edited out from here it is gone and that is about all you can do. If it has been picked and and copied into other locations it is now part of the internet.

I guess they were concerned that your confidential information can be compared and used by others?

Enjoy the Cape.

[Tony From West Oz Vice Chairperson of WARFA Find all posts View Profile Close Tony From West Oz]

Re: Solar Electricity - Grid Connect

As Geoff has said, if the quote has been copied to other websites, you can't recover it.

One must be careful with Confidentiality when posting on the Internet. Once it is there, there is no confidentiality, it becomes PUBLIC Information.

If you have a document which is confidential, you should not post it.

Regards,
Tony

[Geoffwin Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Geoffwin]

Re: Solar Electricity - Grid Connect

I also put in for a quote for systems from solarchoice and the quote came to me as a pdf file that appeared to have live links (as buttons) in it (to accept a quote)

I never selected the buttons but I assume they go to some sort of confirmation page that requires some further input from the person who requested the quote? If it does not it needs some sort of modification.

The reasons for solarchoice being concerned seems legit but they also need to have a look at the way they supply the quote. eg it would be better if they did not supply the pdf quote as well as the on site quote. They could also consider password access to the online quote with any necessary disclaimers about being confidential.

[Nuddy Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Nuddy]

Re: Solar Electricity - Grid Connect

Solar Choice have been great. I would recommend anyone to go through Solar Choice.

The company that I went with off their comparitive quote has been disappointing. Their price was good and they promised 4-6 weeks to installation. They installed the panels right on the 6 weeks but no inverter. Another 6 weeks and they installed a 2.8kw inverter (to a5.04kw system) and a couple of weeks later another 2.8. So the system is ready to connect but we have had nothing from Energy Aust which is the next step and we are pretty sure it is the companies fault but they are not being helpful. I won't name the company publicly. Situation is they sent me a form to fill in and fax to energy aust. The form was to generate a job number with EA. I filled in the form but left off the 'NMI' number. I faxed it to EA and also back to the company. some weeks later I had a call from the company to tell me that I had left off that number and without it nothing would happen. I got the number and sent it to the company and they said they would get it to EA. Apparently that didn't happen back then but now hopefully it has. anyway we are months down the track and still not connected. I wish we had gone with a local company so that we could chase all this up more easily.

[Nuddy Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Nuddy]

Re: Solar Electricity - Grid Connect

I've got a nice little 1.5kW system installed a few weeks back. Not making so much as it's been so cloudy, but I expect that it will pay itself off in 2 to 3 years with the GFiT. I am with Origin Energy and they give $0.66/kWh, so 10% above the NSW State level. I hear that AGL were offering $0.68.
Some of the bigger installers are having trouble keeping up with demand and supply of panels and inverters can be scarce. There are also troubles with getting the Gross Meters installed in some places. I was lucky to find a local sparky who did very good quality workmanship, had good options on the panels and inverters and also gave a very keen price. I got my system installed in just under 4 weeks following my order.
The meter install took a little longer, but only as I'd thought I was with Energy Aust when I was actually with Integral. Luckily it was only an extra week to wait.

I hear that as the AUD goes down against the USD combined with the value of RECs also diminishing (I guess the market must be more flooded with RECs now that there has been so much solar take-up), the net price of a 3kW system could now be about $1000 more than it was last month. Still with the NSW GFiT this would equate to roughly 4-6 months additional time to pay it off, so still worthwhile I reckon.

Mate, I'm so jealous. I was considering Origin and really wish I had gone with them as you did.

[Surf Diesel Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Surf Diesel]

Re: Solar Electricity - Grid Connect

I talked to SolarChoice and contacted one of their quoted companies. I asked a few simple questions, mostly about the extras I may have to pay as I don't live in Sydney but they couldn't answer me. I talked to two local guys here on the South Coast who were great, I have chosen one of them who has got my approval from Integral already, the panels are two weeks away. He has quoted me a fixed price and does all the work himself. Hopefully all will go well.